I, like many others, have received GEICO direct mail advertisements
(henceforth referred to as “junk mail”) addressed to me in the hopes of
soliciting my business. I generally find junk mail to be a waste of time,
paper, and money, as I never, ever respond to any advertisements of that
type.
In 2004, I was a Private First Class in the US Army and was stationed at
Fort Lewis, Washington. Somehow, GEICO discovered this fact, and started
sending military-themed junk mail to me at the base. These were addressed to
me by name and rank, even though I carried an out-of-state driver’s license,
drove an out-of-state registered car, and had no civilian documentation
indicating I was living in Washington. At first, I simply discarded them.
Later, as it became evident that the mailings would not stop on their own, I
called the number contained in the material within the envelope, politely
indicated I was not interested in their advertisements or service, and
requested to be removed from their marketing lists. They apologized for the
trouble, and said I would be removed at once, though I may receive one or
two more mailings as they’re prepared in advance. “All right”, I said, as I
was willing to deal with one or two more letters as long as they stopped
after that. The mail did not stop, even after several months. I received
military-themed junk mail from GEICO every few weeks.
In November of 2004, I was honorably discharged from the army and returned
to my home in California. Somehow, GEICO knew this too, and started sending
me junk mail to my home address. These pieces of junk mail were both the
normal civilian letters, as well as military-themed letters. Both of which
were addressed to me by name and rank, even though I was no longer in the
military, and had no further affiliation with the military. Somehow, they
even found out about a last-minute promotion I received immediately before
being discharged from the army and addressed me by my new rank.
I called them again and requested to be removed from their mailing lists,
indicating I had made a prior request while in Washington. They assured me
that I would cease receiving mail within a month or so, and apologized for
the mailings.
The mailings continued without stop every two weeks or so. It was not
uncommon for the military and civilian junk mail pieces to arrive on the
same day and be addressed identically. I grew annoyed, and over the next two
years I made at least half a dozen calls to GEICO to politely request, and
then later politely demand to be removed from their mailing lists. Each
time, I was assured I would be removed immediately, and I may receive one or
two more letters before they would stop arriving. Each time, I continued to
receive the mailings like clockwork.
Fast forward to August, 2006. The junk mail at my home in California
continued unabated. With a little bit of money and some academic credits, I
moved to Tucson, Arizona and am completing my college degree at the
University of Arizona. I rent a private apartment (no roommates) about two
miles from the university. Within days, before I could even file a change of
address form with the US Postal Service, I started receiving military and
civilian themed GEICO junk mail addressed to me by name and rank (even
though I’d been out of the army for two years). Disappointingly, one of the
first calls made from my apartment was to GEICO to remove me from their
mailing lists. Again, they apologized and assured me I would be removed
immediately.
Unfortunately, my previous auto insurance provider could not offer
affordable rates in Tucson, and I unenthusiastically switched to GEICO, as
they were the cheapest insurance provider in town. One would think that the
junk mail would immediately cease, as I was now a customer and there was no
reason to continue to solicit me. One would be wrong.
As the mail continued, now in greater volume than before, I wrote two formal
letters of complaint. One to Tony Nicely, CEO, and another to Richard Kidd,
Vice President, GFR Sales Management / Military Department. I received no
response from Mr. Nicely, though I did receive a response within a few days
from Mr. Kidd apologizing for the mail and saying he would look into the
matter. Other than continuing to receive junk mail, I detected no change in
GEICO’s marketing policies. (On a side note, rather than send me all my
necessary documents in one large envelope, they sent me six separate
envelopes, some with duplicate information that I had already received, with
all my policy information. Very inefficient and difficult to sort.)
With junk mail continuing, I called GEICO in mid-January, politely explained
the situation and my frustration, and gave them an ultimatum: the next day I
received a piece of GEICO junk mail would be the last day I would be a GEICO
customer. I informed them that I would cancel my GEICO policy that very day.
The agent said that she would add my address — again — to the do-not-mail
list they maintain, as well as pass on my request to their home office for
further review.
Today, the first of February, 2007, I received another piece of GEICO junk
mail. In keeping with my word, I called a competing insurance company,
arranged for a policy with identical coverage effective immediately, and
paid for the coverage over the phone. I then called GEICO, had them pull up
my file, pointed out the note in my file about my promise to cancel my
policy upon receiving another letter, and informed them that I would like to
cancel my policy effective immediately, and have the remaining credit
refunded as soon as possible. Rather than efficiently comply with my
request, they attempted to convince me to remain a customer, even going so
far as asking if there was anything to do to keep me. I indicated that they
could have stopped sending me junk mail the very first time I requested it
three years ago, or on any of the 10 or so occasions in the interim that I
had called them to request that they stop sending me junk mail, or once I
became a customer, or once I wrote formal letters of complaint to their
executives, or once I gave them the ultimatum. I assured them that there was
absolutely nothing they could do to keep me as a customer, as I had given my
word that I would close my account, and I would do just that. They conceded,
apologized (I’m sick of being apologized too — I just wanted the junk
stopped.), closed my account, and said they would refund the credit on my
account within one week to my credit card. We’ll see if they actually follow
through.
In conclusion, I have never received junk mail from any insurance company
other than GEICO. GEICO has badgered me with an ever-increasing volume of
mail for three years, at three separate addresses in three different states,
even when I’ve changed my state driver’s license from a California one to an
Arizona one. They continued to address me by name and rank, and sent me
military-themed junk mail years after I had left the military. They clearly
knew who I was, as they had the ability to know my name and rank and prior
military experience wherever I moved. There was zero excuse for continuing
to send me that much junk mail after years of requesting that it be stopped.
There was even less of an excuse once I became a customer.
GEICO’s indifference to requests to stop junk mail on request, even from
paying customers, has alienated me to such a degree that I will no longer
conduct business with them. I will not recommend them to any individual or
company. I have very strong loyalties to companies that offer a good service
at a reasonable price, and will remain a loyal customer for years. By
failing to perform the simple act of *not* sending me junk mail, GEICO has
lost a customer and has gained an opponent. They will never again see a dime
of my money.
Pete S.
Tucson, Arizona.